Meth in the City

Although methamphetamines have been traditionally associated with rural areas of the United States, the documentary filmmakers at A&E explore the ways in which restrictions on sales of Sudafed have inadvertently sent the meth epidemic from the country to the city streets. By restricting sales of Sudafed (an over the counter medication that contains a key component of methamphetamine), law enforcement officials assumed that they had finally won the war on a drug that ravages the body and corrupts the soul. But while those restrictions did indeed help to make small-time meth labs a thing of the past, they unintentionally opened the doors for Mexican drug cartels to flood American cities with a drug that's popularity quickly began to spread like wildfire. In this film, users and activists alike speak out about what can be done prevent urban methamphetamine use from reaching epidemic levels.